In a fishing world saturated with reports of declining fish populations, an encouraging story has emerged from local waters: Lingcod numbers are way up, and these beautiful but sinister-looking fish are now easier to catch than they've been for decades. This, it would seem, is a great thing.

But rather than be thankful and count their blessings, many sport fishermen have instead tried to capitalize on this state of abundance by rallying the California Department of Fish and Wildlife to go ahead with a plan to increase the daily sport fishing bag limit on lingcod from two, as it is currently, to three. The action was approved in June and the new regulations, which also include a lengthened season, will take effect in 2015. Commercial lingcod fishermen, too, will be allowed more fishing time.

Lingcod are more abundant now than they've been since perhaps the 1970s, according to federal and state marine biologists. Though the species was declared "seriously depleted" in 2001 by the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, the population of this relatively fast-growing member of the greenling family has rebounded. While commercial and sport fishermen combined take about 337 tons per year, according to John Devore, a groundfish staff officer with the Pacific Fishery Management Council, the maximum sustainable take is much higher, he says — probably about 1,000 tons. Thus, since we can take more, we should take more, officials are saying.

Fishermen are divided on this issue. Some are opposed to the action — like most of the 70-something party boat captains in the Golden Gate Fishermen's Association. The group's president, Sausalito boat skipper Roger Thomas, of the Salty Lady says "the vast majority" of the members did not want the increased limit.

Coastside Fishing Club, on the other hand, did. Marc Gorelnik, on the group's board of directors, points out that fishery regulators generally tighten down on fishing restrictions through time, including how many fish one can keep and where anglers can fish.

"Now, they're finally saying, even with a conservative analysis, 'We can give you one more lingcod,'" Gorelnik said. "I agree that we should be conservative about this, but three lingcod is conservative." Gorelnik added that most individual sport fishermen — as opposed to party boat captains — want the higher lingcod limit.

But not Larkspur angler Mark Birnbaum. He believes that lingcod numbers are up, just based on how easy they are to catch now. "But who needs three lingcod?" he says.

Fishery officials have called their action an effort to increase "angler opportunity," though this seems like a weak argument. That's because the same fishermen who would have been on the water anyway will still be fishing. Only difference is now they'll have a chance to catch a third lingcod — and probably catch and accidentally kill a handful of small, unwanted rockfish while they're at it.

The lingcod population, scientists have determined, is "underutilized" — a status that seems to presume lingcod, and perhaps anything else edible, exist only to be utilized. Some fishermen who support the increased bag limit have said they believe that lingcod will decimate rockfish populations if the animals aren't culled — the same song we sometimes hear from outdoors writers and deer hunters who see mountain lions, wolves and coyotes as intruders on their harems. Personally, as a frequent diver off the Northern California coast, I have watched rockfish and lingcod numbers escalate side by side.

In Santa Cruz, sport fisherman Sean Van Sommeran, also a well-known independent shark conservationist, believes a two-lingcod limit achieves a balance between allowing an angler plenty of fish to eat while also allowing the lingcod population to flourish.

"If we let the lingcod population keep growing, then in a few years, the two fish you're allowed to take will be of better quality," Van Sommeran said.

John Budrick, a lingcod specialist with the Department of Fish and Wildlife, says the lingcod population is currently at about 62 percent of its estimated unfished, "virgin" biomass. Compared to other targeted species, this is a very healthy stock — and one, he says, that should be taken advantage of.

"(The Department of Fish and Wildlife) wants fishermen to take the greatest amount they can to maximize enjoyment of the resource and the economic value of it," Budrick said.

But wouldn't it be a sad fisherman who couldn't enjoy a day on the water if he or she had to let a third lingcod go? Happily for them, next year they won't have to.